Bill-file.



E. M SHREINER.

BILL FILE. APPLICATION FILED 00T.20, 1908.

Patelited May 4, 1909.

@ Ila 3i a WITNESSES F\TTORNEY rus mamas PETERS 5a., WASHINGTON. n. c.

EDWARD M. SHREINER, OF CANTON, OHIO.

BILL-FILE.

lilo. QBOAUF L. Specification of Letters Patent. Patented May 4, 1909. Application filed October 20, 1908. Serial No. 158,590.

having a hinged finger thereon with a hook To all whom may concern:

on its free end adapted to he engaged under .lle it known that l, linwrinn M. Srmnnvnn, l a citizen of the United States, residing at the free ends of the trays. llantou, in the county of Stark and State of I The invention, thus described. in general .1 Ohio, have *cnted a new and useful 1111- I terms, is illustrated in the accompanying l l I provemenl Lililes, of which the followdrawings, forming part hereof, in Wl'llGll--- ingis a spe 'cation. Figure 1 is a perspective view; of a shelf The lllVsll tion relates to file for bills of with a number of files in various positions sales or acco is, as of a retail merchant, and thereon or adjacent thereto; l ig. 2, a dethe object of the invention is to provide a tached perspective view of the supporting simple, corn a-ct and inexpensive his in bracket showing its parts separated one from which the loo. hills of respective customers another Fig. 3, a detached perspective fragcau. he separately stored, and in which the lnentary view showing the hinged parts of file prope is normally arranged in a recthe supplemental supporting post and finger i5 tangular form and can he readily placed on Fig. 4, a detached perspective view of one and removed. from its support, for entering in tray; and llig. 5, a longitudinal section of the a safe or vault, and when supported is in conhill file showing the operation of the same, veniont position. for entering accounts as without the supplemental supporting means. sales are made or goods are delivered. 'lhcse Similar numerals refer to similar parts 20 general objects and other particular advanthroughout the drawings. 7 tag-es are attained by iua g the file proper The file proper 1s composed of the trays i.

of a series of thin trays provided with pairs of 1*, 1 etc, which are preferably made of longitudinally elongated slots near their upthin metal sheets with series of perforations per ends, and having series of index tongues 2 in the body to lessen the weight of the indion opposite sirilos of alternate sheets and arvidual trays and of the file as a Whole. Each ranged in echelon or each side of the file 2 and tray is provided with one or more longitudihy providi a pair of hinged arms on the nally elongated slots 3 at or near the normal supportin clcct, each arm being reversely rear end, and the side and forward edges 4:, rd an d then forward from l and 5 are flanged diagonally upward and I D curved hrst rec l l 30 the hinge toward its free end, which arms are I outward. The trays are normally adapted adapted to he entered into the elongated slots to nest together in a rectangular pack, as of the trays for holding the same during the shown by broken outlines in. Fig. 5, and the ordinary use of the file, whereby the trays hills 6 are stored between the respective are adapted to he individually and collecttrays, being there held by the weight of the o0 ively rotated 'lu ward and hachward, and. to superimposed trays and by the flanged edges he held and supported by the free ends of the r of the par icular tray in which the bills are arms when rotated haclovard beyond a vertifiled. cal position. The index tongues 7, 7 '7, etc, are pro- A further ohjectof the invention pertains vided on the edges of one side flange 4& of

40 to the particular method of securing together the several trays, which tongues are arranged the two plates of the sup porting hraclret, l on opposite sides of alternate trays, the which object is attained by providing a'lixed tongues on each side of the file being ar post and a removable pin on. one section and l ranged. in echelon, and index reference letby providing an aperture on the other secters as A, B, C, etc, are marked on the up- 45 tion adapted to pass over the head of the wardly exposed faces of successive tongues.

post, with a slot extending in one direction The normal top tray 1-' is preferably profroin the aperture adapted to receive the vided with the index card 8 which is pretshank of the post and a slot in the opposite erahly held in position by the edges 9, 9 direction adapted to receive the shank of the and 10 of the side and. end :llanges which 50 pin. are bent over corresponding edges of the A supplemental feature of the invention card, and on this card are listed the names relates to means for suoporting the open pertaining to the series of bills or accounts trays when they are inclined forward from included in the file, each name heing indexed a vertical position, which purpose is accoinwith a letter like the index letter contained plished hy providing a post behind the file l on the corresponding tray tongue. 11

It is evident that to expose the bills of a certain account, it is only necessary to locate the tongue which is formed on the flange of the tray neXt above the account, and by placing the finger under the end of this tongue which projects beyond the tongue next below the superimposed trays can be readily separated from the lower ones and lifted to uncover the desired bills.

The supporting bracket is preferably composed of two interengaging plates 11 and 12, the rear portion 11 u of the former plate being fastened as by the screws 13 to the shelf 14 and the forward portion 11 of this fixed plate being preferably inclined downward and forward from the forward end of the shelf. The post 15 having the head 15 thereon, is provided on the forwardly inclined portion of the fixed plate, and the aperture 16 is also provided in this plate adjacent to the post.

The aperture 17 is provided. in the plate 12, preferably near its rear end and in the middle line thereof, which aperture is shaped to pass freely over the head of the post 15. The aperture 17 is extended, preferably rearward, by the relatively narrow slot 17, and forward, by the similar slot 17, one of which slots, preferably the rear one, being adapted to neatly receive, by a forward sliding of the plate 12, the shank of the post 15 and to be engaged under the head thereof, in. which relation of the parts the other slot, preferably the forward one, registers with the aperture 16 of the fixed plate. The shank of the headed pin 18 is then entered through the forward slot 17 and into the aperture 16 of the fixed plate, which. slot and aperture the pin. is arranged to neatly lit, whereby the two plates are positively locked in their engaged position.

The parallel arms 19 are preferably yoked. together by the pintle 20 which pintle is adapted to rotate in the transversely positioned bearing 21 preferably located on the rear end of the detachable plate 12. Referring to the upright position of these arms, illustrated by broken lines in Fig. 5, they are reversely curved hinged end, first rearward and then forward, and in this position they are adapted to receive the file proper by being entered through. the elongated apertures of the respective trays. While the use of two arms is illustrated and. preferred, it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention either to a particular number or to a plurality of arms. When the trays are thus engaged on the parallel arms, the elongation of the tray slots permits considerable freedom of movement of the trays on the arms which freedom permits the trays to hang slightly forward. on the arms as illustrated for the closed files in Fig. 1, or to be rotated upward and backwardas illustratedsforgthe upper trays upward from the in. Fig. 5; these movements of the trays be ing permitted by the rotation of the arms on the hinge formed. by the pintle in its bearing.

It is evident that when the trays liang forward on the arms, they are secure y held l and bound together by the abutting action l of the forward free ends 19 of the arm as shown in Fig. 1, and that when the t are rotated upward and baciward be, 1 the vertical position, they are securely held l and supported in the backwardly inclined l esition by the abutment the same free ends of the arms as shown in Fig. 5. And it is evident that when the arms are brought to an upright position, the trays are nested in substantially a rectangular pack, as shown by broken outlines in Fig. 5, and that in this relation they can be readily removed from the bracket and its arms, by lifting the trays directly upward. Furthermore, when desired, the trays and the detachable part of the back can be readily detached from the l fixed plate thereof by merely removing the l locking pin.

The supplemental posts 22 are preferably provided on the shelv sufficient distance gin the rear of the files to clear the tr; IS when they are rotated upward and backward I beyond a vertical position. These posts are l curved upward and forward to clear the locus of the upper edges of the tr ys as the are rotated'backward, and on the upper end hinged the finger .8 having i the hook 24 on. its free end. "he hooked fingers are adapted to be rotated forward l to engage and hold the free ends of the trays I when they are opened upward to a position inclined. forward. from the vertical, as shown for the open file in 1, or the hooked fingers can be rotated backward out of the way when not in such. use, and it will be understood that these supplemental posts and hooked fingers can be dispensed with of each post is altogether, in which event the file is operated exclusively as shown in Fig. 5.

\ VJhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In combination, a series of normally nested trays having upwardly inclined flanges on their sides and forward end and 5 longitudinally elongated slots in their rear l end, and a bracket including an inclined plate with parallel arms yoked together and hinged to the rear p art of the plate, the arms being reversely curved upward first rearward then forward and being entered through the slots, whereby the trays are adapted to be opened rearward and closed forward on the bracket and to be held and supported there by in the opened and closed positions.

2. In combination, a series of normally nested trays having longitudinally elongated slots in their rear ends, and a bracket with parallel arms yoked together and hinged thereon, the arms being reversely curved upward first rearward. then forward and being entered through the tray slots, whereby the trays are adapted to be opened rearward and closed forward on the bracket and to be held and supported thereby in the opened and closed positions.

3. in combination, a series of normally nested trays having longitudinally elongated slots in one end, and a bracket with parallel arms yoked together and hinged thereon, the arms being revorsely curved in vertical-longitudinal planes and being entered through the tray slots, whereby the trays are adapted to be rotated to and fro on the bracket and to be held and supported by the arms at each end oi their movement.

l. In combination, a series of normally nested trays having a longitudinally elongated slot in one end, and a bracket having an arm hinged thereon, the arm being reversely eurved in a vertieal-longitudinal plane and being entered through the tray slots, whereby the trays are adapted to be rotated to and t re on the bracket and to be held and supported by the arm at eaeh end of their movement.

5. In combination, a series of normally nested trays having tongues on opposite sid as of alternate trays, the tongues on each side being arranged in echelon and having index designations on their exposed upper sides and a card on the normal top tray hav ing an index thereon with. corresponding designations located opposite the respective tongues,

6. in combination, a series of normally nested trays having tongues on opposite sides of alternate trays, the tongues on each side being arranged in echelon, and having index designations on their ex )osed upper sides, the exposed lower sides of the tongues being adapted to be engaged for lifting the superimposed trays from the ones below.

7. In combination, a shelf or the like having a plate attached thereon, there being a post having head on the shelf-plate and an aperture in the plate adjacent to the post, a

. bill tile including a bracket plate having an aperture therein adapted to pass freely over the post head and relatively narrow slots on opposite sides of the same aperture, one slot being adapted to neatly reeeive the postshank and in this relation the other slot being arranged to register with the shelf-plate aperture, and a pin adapted to be entered and lit in the latter slot and aperture, whereby the plates are engaged and locked together. 8. In combination, a series of trays normally nested together and adapted to be retated upward on one end, and an adj aeently pivoted finger having a hook thereon adapted to engage and support the free ends of the trays when in an elevated osition.

EDWARD M. SHREINER. 'ffi tnesses CARROLL S. YOUNG, RUTH A. MILLER. 

